Page 21 - Phonebox Magazine October 2006

Councillor Corner
A contribution from Councillor Debbie Brock
NOT SO ‘TEMPORARY’ SCHOOL ARRANGEMENTS
Pupils who would now be attending the Olney Campus have begun the new school term in temporary classrooms at the Ousedale site and at Oakgrove. Communication inadequacies in notifying parents about the delays to the Campus, have been made worse by the belated notification to parents about school bus collection points, times and routes to the Middleton site. For those who have made contact with me it’s been the icing on the cake. A month after writing about the delays to the Campus, no new information has emerged by the time of writing this article. The general communication failings of the learning and development department were acknowledged to me by the council’s head of department David Gamble.
WINDFARM APPLICATIONS
As predicted last month, the planning department at Milton Keynes Council is now in receipt of two applications for windfarms. At their nearest points the Nunn Wood and Petsoe projects are 6km apart, in spite of this, neither application has taken any account of the other, nor of another planned to be developed just outside Hinwick at Poddington. It should be understood that an application is just that and no one should assume that consent will necessarily be granted. If you would like to express your feelings to the authorities the planning details are as follows;
The Petsoe Manor site – Application number 061349 by MK Windfarm Ltd. Letters should go to the Planning Department at Milton Keynes Council.
The Nunn Wood site is complicated as it is lodged with three different planning authorities, letters should be written in reference to Application number WP/2006/0474 at the Borough Council of Wellingborough. Application number 06/01290/FULEIS at Milton Keynes Borough Council.
Bedford Planning Authority have not given the application a reference number. For more details and advice see the B.L.E.W. report in this issue.
COMMUNICATION MAST
The transportation of a communication mast to be erected at East Street was marked by a very sad loss of life in transit, since then it has been beleaguered with difficulties. There is currently a stalemate between operator and landlord, resulting in the mast not being activated. The landlord, the Fire Authority, wish to see the mobile phone mast sited elsewhere in the county in the light of public objection to the site. The tenant, in this case the mobile phone operator, seeks either access to switch on or substantial damages. This means that until the matter is resolved the mast will remain dormant in position.
SIGNS
Shops in Olney deserve our support as they are a lively and enriching feature of our town. I was saddened by the recent crackdown on all signage diverting customers down alleys and to far tucked away places – Rose Court, Bull Court, Osborne’s Court to name but a few. I acknowledge that inappropriately sited A Boards can cause a nuisance, however some middle ground needs to be found. From Milton Keynes I am merely told that the law has to be enforced equally. Cabinet member Douglas McCall has however
come up with a solution for the Farmers Market signage, it should be directional (rather than advertising) only.
BAD NEWS ON RURAL TAXATION
Yes, I’m talking about the landscaping that costs so dearly, all rural parishes saw a large rise, Warrington for example, had an increase of £600 a year for this council service, that’s not a total of, but a rise of £600. Well things are coming to a head as reports show that indeed powers are in place for the current administration to have carried out such changes but did so with very little information to
those most affected. There will be no recompense to those affected, despite failings being recognised.
FORTHCOMING ART EXHIBITION IN AID OF THE COWPER JOHNSON APPEAL
Many thanks must go to the Revd. Phillip Davies for hosting a forthcoming fund raising weekend at the Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul in Olney. There will be a programme of events put in place for the 27th, 28th and 29th October, as well as an Art exhibition with amateur & professional participation. Please see advertisement on page 62.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
My thanks must also go to a Lavendon resident who collected many signatures in an attempt to secure better transport links to Olney, these all combine with the letters
already forwarded to the transport section at Milton Keynes Council to improve scheduling by meeting specific needs. Already many current difficulties being experienced by public transport users have been tackled by a very hard working officer at the Council, as many in direct contact with me will acknowledge, however the level of subsidy available will always restrict the use of a magic wand.
CONGRATULATIONS
To Mrs Alison Waspe esteemed Headteacher of Olney Middle School who recently celebrated ten years in her position. Hard working school Governors and colleagues put on a lively bash for Alison, where she was presented with two beautiful paintings by local artist Charles, father of site manager Barbara Tate.
Weston Underwood has received the Cup Winners Cup in the Best Kept Village Award for 2006. Residents and judges enjoyed tea on the village Green and a touching speech was given by Parish Council Chairman John Covington.
Olney hosted the Britain in Bloom results announcement ceremony this month. Peopled by the great and good of competition entrants, Olney achieved a joint first with Woodstock. d
CONTACT INFORMATION
Cllr Debbie Brock, c/o Civic Offices, 1 Saxon Gate East, CMK MK9 3HG Tel: 07884 397253 Email: debbie.brock@milton-keynes.gov.uk
Phonebox Magazine 21